Eraser means



ERASER MEANS Filed Oct. 4, 1956 INVENTOR Lesfer L. Rochesfer ATTORNEYS United States Patent ()7 ERASER MEANS Lester L. Rochester, Oak Harbor, Ohio, assignor of onethird to Clarence E. Augsbach and one-third to Marcus Ray Hughes, Toledo, Ohio Application October 4, 1956, Serial No. 613,885

4 Claims. 01. 120-36) be apparent from the following detailed description, and

from the accompanying drawings illustrating one embodiment thereof, and in which- Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the erasing tool, with parts broken away;

Fig. 2 is a side view thereof with the casing cover removed, with the parts in normal position, and with parts broken away;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged cross-section on the line 3-3 in Fig. 2; I

Fig. 4 is a cross-section on the line 44 in Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to'Fig. 2, with parts broken away and showing the application of the tool to a paper on a typewriter platen to erase a character from the paper, and

Fig. 6 is an enlarged perspective view of the forward end portion of the tool as it appears in Fig. 5.

Referring to the drawings, 1 designates a hollow casing or housing in which the operating parts of the tool are carried and which is of elongated form substantially rectangular in cross-section, with one end portion preferably outwardly reduced in size and provided at its free end with an opening 2. The case is provided on one side with a removable cover 1*.

Projecting through said opening 2 and guided thereby for longitudinal reciprocatory movements relative to the casing is what may be termed a masking plunger 3. This plunger has an opening 4 longitudinal therethrough that receives a stationary pressure bar 5 that is provided at its inner end with a head 6 fixed at one side, the back in the present instance, to the case, as shown in Fig. 4.

A coiled compression spring 7 is mounted around the bar 5 between the head 6 and the inner end of the plunger 3 and serves to normally project the plunger upward its limit of movement from the case, as shown in Fig. 2. The outer end of theplunger opening 4 is preferably but not necessarily rectangular and of a size to fit quite closely around any character impression made by a typewriter key.

The nose or outer end of the bar 5 has an erasing tape 10 looped lengthwise therearound so that when the plunger 3 is moved inward in the case by pressure against a stationary object, as for instance a sheet of paper a against a typewriter platen b, the looped portion of the tape 10 will be pressed to the paper by the bar 5, as shown in Fig. 5. The tape 10 is of an adhesive character on its outer side so that when withdrawn from its contact with the paper a it will remove a thin surface portion of the paper with the ink impression, which it is desired to erase, thereon. I

The tape 10 unwinds from a feed roll mounted on 2,851,008 Patented Sept. 9, 1958 2, a shaft 12 in the outer end portion of the case 1, and after passing lengthwise of the case through side slots 13 in the plunger 3 and around the outer end of the bar.

5, then passes inward to the case and winds around a take-up roll 14 mounted on a screw shaft 15.

An indexing means for the tape is mounted within the case 1 and is automatically operated to advance the tape a predetermined distance during each combined inward and outward movement of the plunger 3. This means comprises a ratchet wheel 16 fixed to one end of the take-up roll 14 to turn therewith, a pawl 17 pivoted at 18 to. a side of the plunger 3 at its inner end to move therewith, and a flat spring finger 19 that has a back check spur 20 riding against the teeth of the ratchet wheel to prevent back turning movements thereof. When the plunger 3 is in normal projected position, as in Fig. 2, the pawl 17 is free of the ratchet wheel, but when moved inward from this position it slides up the spring finger 19 and is moved thereby into engagement with a side registering tooth of the ratchet wheel 16, as shown in Fig. 5, so as to index'the wheel forward a predetermined distance during the next outward move:

ment of the finger and cause a feeding movement of to the paper thereby causing the plunger to be forced into the case and the bar'S to advance and force the engaged tape loop against the paper. When the inward pressure on the tool case is relieved the plunger 3 moves outward under tension of the spring 7 and causes a release of the tape from the paper while the masking plunger is still in engagement therewith. It will thus be seen that the adhesive-coated tape does not tend to pull the paper back with the bar 5 and the case, but disengages itself in the instant required for spring 7 to expand. At the same time the index means is operated to advance the tape to place a fresh portion around the bar end. As the tape withdraws from the paper a very thin portion of the engaged surface of the paper to which the tape adheres is withdrawn therewith, thus effecting a removal of the character to be erased.

It is apparent that we have provided a simple tool that is easily and quickly manipulated to erase or remove characters such as letters, numbers, or the like, from the printed and particularly typewritten matter by simply placing the opening in the plunger 3 over or around the character to be removed, forcing the tool easing inward to eifect a retraction of the plunger against the tension of the spring 7, thus permitting the portion of the tape 10 that is looped around the end of the bar 5 to be pressed thereby against the registering character. Upon withdrawal of the tool the paper is stripped from the tape by outward movement of the plunger 3 with the engaged surface portion including the character to be erased clinging to the tape. As the plunger 3 moves outward the indexing mechanism is actuated to advance the tape one step and place a fresh portion thereof across the end of the pressure bar 5. When the tape has been entirely used the cover plate 1 of the case is taken off, the ratchet wheel 16 and take-up roll 14 removed, and the used roll of the tape then stripped from the take-up roll. A fresh roll of tape may now be placed on the shaft 12, thence passed through the side openings 13 in the plunger 3, around the end of the pressure bar 5, and finally fastened in any suitable manner to the take-up roll 14.

I wish it understood that my invention is not limited to any specific construction, arrangement or form of the parts, as it is capable of numerous modifications and changes without departing from the spirit of the claims.

I claim:

1. An erasure means having a hollow case with an opening in one end, a pressure bar fixedly mounted in the case and projecting a short distance through said opening, a masking plunger mounted in the case around said bar for limited reciprocatory movements lengthwise thereof through said case opening, means acting on said plunger to yieldingly force its outer end a distance through and beyond said opening and the outer end of said bar, an adhesive tape feeding from a supply source within the case transversely through said plunger and around the outer end of said bar, a take-up roll in the case for said tape, and means in the case attached to the plunger for imparting an index movement to the tape at each inward and outward movement of the plunger, said plunger movement exposing the tape at the bar end to pressure against a member with which the outer plunger end is engaged.

2. An erasure means of the class described having a hollow case with an opening in one end, a pressure bar fixedly mounted inthe case with its outer end projected through said opening, a masking plunger mounted in the case for longitudinal reciprocatory movements and projecting outwardly through said opening, said plunger having an opening extending from its outer end inwardly and receiving said bar and from which the forward end of the bar may project when the plunger is moved inward a predetermined extent, an adhesive tape feeding from a source in said case around the forward end of said bar, yielding means normally urging the outward movement of said plunger to project its outer end beyond said outer bar end, and means actuated by reciprocatory movements of the plunger to impart indexing movement to said tape.

3. An erasing means of the class described having a case with an end opening, a stationary tape guide bar mounted in the case and having an end projected through said opening, an adhesive tape looped around said projected end of the guide bar, pay-out and take-up rolls in the case for said tape, a masking member disposed in the case and receiving said guide bar for limited movements lengthwise thereof and having an open outer end normally projecting through said opening beyond said projected guide bar end, spring means on said tape guide acting on said masking member to normally hold it in projected position, said member being inwardly movable by inward end pressure thereagainst to retract it a predetermined extent relative to said guide bar to expose the loop portion of said tape for pressure against a paper from which erasure is to be made, and means on the masking member to impart successive indexing movements to the tape.

4. In an erasing means of the class described, a pressure bar, an adhesive tape looped around an end of said bar and pressable against a registering paper by endwise pressure of the bar and removing the engaged surface portion of the paper when the bar and tape are withdrawn, a member for masking a character to be erased which member encircles said bar and is movable lengthwise thereof to cover and uncover its tape looped end, means yieldingly holding said member in covering relation to said bar end, and means on the masking member to impart intermittent feeding movements to the tape around the bar end.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,399,734 Baldwin Dec. 13, 1921 1,636,611 McGlynn July 19, 1927 1,788,658 Carlson Jan. 13, 1931 

